Sunlight: "Conventional opinion is the ruin of our souls"

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

"Conventional opinion is the ruin of our souls"

Conventional opinion is the ruin of our souls,
something borrowed which we mistake as our own.
Ignorance is better than this; clutch at madness instead.
Always run from what seems to benefit your self:
sip the poison and spill the water of life.
Revile those who flatter you;
lend both interest and principle to the poor.
Let security go and be at home amidst dangers.
Leave your good name behind and accept disgrace.
I have lived with cautious thinking;
now I'll make myself mad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

`Elm-e taqlidi vabâl-e jân-e mâst
`âriyeh-st va mâ neshasteh k'ân-e mâst
Zin kherad jâhel hami bâyad shodan
dast dar divanegi bâyad zadan
Har cheh bini sud-e khvod ze ân mi goriz
zahr nush va âb-e hayvân-râ be-riz
Har keh bastâyad terâ doshnâm deh
sud o sarmâyeh be-mofles vâm deh
Aymani be-gozâr va jâ-ye khawf bâsh
be-gozar az nâmus va rasvâ bâsh o fâsh
zmudam `aql-e durândish-râ
ba`d azin divâneh sâzam khvish-râ

-- Mathnawi II: 2327-2332
Version by Camille and Kabir Helminski
"Rumi: Daylight"
Threshold Books, 1994
Persian transliteration courtesy of Yahyá Monastra

The Persian image:
http://tinyurl.com/gs39p